1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a container for holding a can or a bottle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In general, containers for holding a can or a bottle are known in the prior art. The following 10 patents and published patent applications are the closest prior art references which are related to the present invention.
1. U.S. Pat. No. 3,028,702 issued to Napoleon J. St. Cyr on Apr. 10, 1962 for “Nontipping Drinking-Glass Coaster” (hereafter the “Cyr Patent”);
2. U.S. Pat. No. 4,788,916 issued to Nancy Saxton on Dec. 6, 1988 for “Cushion Pouch Tray” (hereafter the “Saxton Patent”);
3. U.S. Pat. No. 4,809,938 issued to Sara J. Skinner et al. on Mar. 7, 1989 for “Baby Bottle Holder” (hereafter the “Skinner Patent”);
4. U.S. Pat. No. 4,889,302 issued to Dalton R. Tucker on Dec. 26, 1989 for “Drinking Container Holder” (hereafter the “Tucker Patent”);
5. U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,435 issued to William Garnett and assigned to Jacob's Ladder Bases Ltd. on Aug. 11, 1998 for “Ladder Etc. Support” (hereafter the “Garnett Patent”);
6. U.S. Pat. No. 4,964,600 issued to San F. Lee on Oct. 23, 1990 for “Insulated Cup Holder With Flexible Base Member” (hereafter the “Lee Patent”);
7. U.S. Pat. No. 6,581,888 issued to Kenneth Antonio Castillo on Jun. 24, 2003 for “Irregular-Surface Glass Holder” (hereafter the “Castillo Patent”);
8. U.S. Design Pat. No. D493,674 issued to Graham C. Lowe on Aug. 3, 2004 for “Beverage Can Cooler” (hereafter the “674 Lowe Design Patent”);
9. U.S. Design Pat. No. D498,392 issued to Graham C. Lowe on Nov. 16, 2004 for “Beverage Can Cooler” (hereafter the “392 Lowe Design Patent”);
10. U.S. Design Pat. No. D504,285 issued to Graham C. Lowe on Apr. 26, 2005 for “Beverage Can Cooler” (hereafter the “285 Lowe Design Patent”).
The Cyr Patent discloses a coaster for retaining a glass. The novel feature is that the coaster contains a multiplicity of weighted pellets 34 with an outer sack 26 which contains a section for retaining a glass. This has the ability so as to enable the bottom of the coaster to conform to any shape such as the arcuate shape of an armchair as illustrated in FIG. 3 so that the coaster can be placed while retaining the glass of liquid in any position and then can be retained in a stable manner. This discloses the concept of having a multiplicity of weighted pellets on the base of the coaster for the purpose of enabling the base to conform to any shape desired but does not have the entire coaster filled with the bean bag type material. The pellets are weighed to give the structure stability.
The Saxton Patent which issued in 1988 discloses a cushion pouch tray which supports a service tray 11 supported on a pouch 12. The tray assembly 10 includes a limp cushion or pillow 13 best illustrated in FIG. 2 which is partially filled with very light weight granules or pellets. The pouch can be deformed in any manner because of the flexible pellets to support the tray.
The Skinner Patent discloses a baby bottle holder which enables the bottle to be retained in an inclined position to be able to feed the baby.
The Tucker Patent discloses a receptacle for retaining a liquid containing device. In this case, the receptacle has the ability to have its bladder filled with liquid and thereafter the liquid may be heated in a microwave or frozen in a refrigerator to keep the liquid contained within the beverage container hot or cold. Thick, mushy substance 22, comprised of fibrous material 17 swollen in the water or other liquid permits holder 1 to be placed in a freezer to freeze the substance thereafter to chill the contents of the drinking container received therein or alternatively replaced in the microwave oven to heat the substance thereafter to heat the material or a cup or other drinking container received therein. Therefore, this device discloses the concept of having the mushy material as it is called which can be heated or frozen and has the bladder filled with liquid.
The Garnett Patent discloses a ladder support which consists of a bag 10 which is filled with sharp sand 11 as illustrated in FIG. 3. This flexible structure is designed to retain a ladder.
The Lee Patent discloses an insulated cup holder which is designed to basically retain a cup as illustrated in FIG. 1 and which has a multiplicity of granular material 32 best illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9. The function is to provide an insulating means and it does not say that its function is to enable it to feel like a bean bag.
The Castillo Patent is an irregular surface glass holder which basically has a base 12 as illustrated in FIG. 2 which is filled with sand 16, granules 18 or a liquid 20 that is flexible enough to adapt to any irregular shape of surface so that the base can form to the surface to keep the glass in a vertically oriented condition so it may retain liquid. This base can be retained in a single compartment as shown in FIG. 4 or in a plurality of smaller compartments as shown in FIG. 2. The concept here is to provide a flexible base so that any shape rough surface can be used to support the glass in the vertical condition because of the flexible base which conforms to the shape of the unusual surface.
The 674 Lowe Patent discloses a design patent for a beverage can cooler.
The 392 Lowe Patent is also a design patent for a different shaped beverage can cooler which once again shows the shape but does not show any interior bean bag like material within the beverage container holder.
The 285 Lowe Patent is also a container for a beverage container with a different shape which once again supports the can within the container but does not talk about having the beverage container holder being a flexible material in the formable bean bag like material.
There is a significant need to significantly improve a container holder for a can or a bottle.